The No. 7 Audi R18 of Marcel Fassler, Andre Lotterer and Benoit Treluyer stormed to a clear victory at the 6 Hours of Silverstone as the 2016 FIA World Endurance Championship season got underway.
The car started on pole position but lost the lead on lap 16 to the No. 1 Porsche 919 Hybrid of Mark Webber. It fell to third after the opening round of pit stops but found itself second during the mid-race safety car.
It was deployed following a scary crash for race leader Brendon Hartley, driving the No. 1 Porsche. He made contact with Michael Wainwright’s Gulf Racing GTE-Am Porsche two hours into the race, with his prototype almost flipping over.
The No.8 Audi then hit trouble with a hybrid failure and retired, promoting Marc Lieb’s No. 2 Porsche to the lead. Lieb and Treluyer enjoyed a frantic battle after the safety car, before the Porsche dropped back with a spin and a puncture.
The No. 2 cut the gap to the No. 7 Audi late on but had to pit for fuel with 10 minutes remaining. Fassler crossed the line 46 seconds clear of the field to claim the German marque's first win since Spa last year, finishing ahead of the No. 2 Porsche and the No. 6 Toyota of Kamui Kobayashi, Stephane Sarrazin and Mike Conway.
It proved to be a mixed day for all three LMP1 manufacturers. Porsche and Audi each lost a car, while the No. 5 Toyota of Kazuki Nakajima picked up a puncture early in the fourth hour, which caused the car to go into the pits for repairs due to bodywork damage. It returned but finished well down the field.
In LMP2, the RGR Sport by Morand car of Ricardo Gonzalez, Filipe Albuquerque and Bruno Senna claimed the class win, beating the No. 31 Extreme Speed Motorsports car and the No. 26 G-Drive Racing machine, which started on pole and led a large chunk of the race.
The No. 71 AF Corse Ferrari of Davide Rigon and Sam Bird dominated the GTE-Pro class, beating the sister No. 51 car despite the latter having an early three-minute penalty for Gianmaria Bruni and James Calado due to an engine change overnight. The AF Corse sweep continued in GTE-Am with the No.83 machine of Francois Perrodo, Emmanuel Collard and Rui Aguas triumphing ahead of the No.98 Aston Martin Racing Vantage V8.
The WEC returns in three weeks' time with the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps.
